Toughness earns offensive lineman recognition
As Cal took its final snap in victory formation late Saturday night, the Mississippi defensive lineman across from right tackle Jake Curhan acknowledged the Bears’ effort and toughness throughout the 27-16 win.
“I mean, there was some expletives in there, but that’s a nice paraphrase,” Curhan said as Cal prepared for its conference opener this week against USC. “That was basically what he said: ‘You guys play really hard.’
“That’s the best compliment I think we can get as a team and the best identity we can establish.”
Curhan is among the players helping the Bears establish that identity. The 6-foot-6, 330pound redshirt freshman from Redwood High-Larkspur was nearly flawless in his pass
blocking against Ole Miss and helped pave the wave for 163 rushing yards.
He was given a game ball, and on Monday, head coach Justin Wilcox told the team that Curhan was Cal’s nominee for the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week.
It was a surprise to Curhan, who had not received a game ball at any level. He was early, as usual, to Monday’s meeting, and Wilcox stopped by to ask him how to pronounce his name.
“I wondered why he asked, and a couple of minutes into the meeting, he was announcing it,” Curhan said. “It was really awesome.”
Curhan is one of three new starters on an offensive line trying to replace six players who combined for 129 career starts.
“You see the touchdowns and the big runs and throws, but he had a really good game,” Wilcox said. “He played his best game yet, and he’s got a lot of really good football ahead of him.” Lessons learned: Wilcox said he doesn’t harbor any hard feelings toward USC head coach Clay Helton, who fired the then-defensive coordinator of the Trojans a day after their 41-22 loss to Stanford in the 2015 Pac-12 championship game.
Wilcox had followed Steve Sarkisian from Washington to USC when Sarkisian got the head-coaching gig in 2013. The Trojans finished 50th in the nation in points allowed (25.7 per game) and 65th in total defense (400.8 yards per game) in 2015.
“Clay didn’t hire me to USC. I went down there with Coach Sarkisian,” Wilcox said. “We went through some things as a program. We didn’t do a good enough job on defense, which falls on me. I totally understand. That’s our profession. Those things happen. It’s not always the most fun, but that’s the way it is. You’ve just got to learn from it, evaluate yourself and move forward.
“I think Clay is a heck of a coach, and he’s doing a great job.” Getting the call: The Pac-12’s weekly conference call is usually reserved for the league’s head coaches, but Cal senior inside linebacker Devante Downs was included Tuesday afternoon.
He believes the Bears aren’t getting enough credit for their 3-0 start. They got 19 points in this week’s Associated Press Top 25 poll, which would place them at No. 32 — if the rankings went that deep.
“We know we’ve got to earn respect in this league,” Downs said. “Seeing as how we’re still unranked, we’ve got to earn our respect. Moving forward, I think everyone is working hard to keep getting better.”